PowerPoint Presentation

Building consensus on community engagement within land reforms and the extractive sector in kenya conferencesarova panafric hotel, March 12-13th 2015Mobilizing Communities to Engage in Natural Resource Reforms: Strategies and Innovative ApproachesFelesia Muyia-Odada, Act Change Transformwww.act.or.ke

OutlineIntroductionWhy public participation in the natural resource reforms?Current state of public participation in KenyaApproaches and strategies for public participationRoles for different actors

Introduction: What is public participation? Who participates? What are the principles?It is a process through which interest groups, individuals or organizations are involved in decision making processes on issues that affect them.

What are the principles of participation?InclusiveEducative Open and transparent Context oriented Informative and proactive Credible and rigorous Tiered and optimized

Why public participation in natural resource reformsIncludes needs and interests of all stakeholdersPromotes involvement of those potentially affected by or interested in a decisionEnsures the public is informed and appreciates what the duty bearers are doingPromotes public support/acceptance on government projectsEnsures accountability and commitment by duty bearersMitigates against violent conflictsReduces over-exploitation and degradation of resourcesBridges the gap between stakeholders- civil society, public, government, private sector

Current state of public participation in Kenya- Legal frameworksArticle 1- all sovereign power belongs to the peopleArticle 10- sets out democracy and participation of the people and inclusiveness as principles of governance in KenyaArticles 54, 55, 56 and 57 provide for participation of PWDs, minorities, marginalized groups, youth and older members of societyArticle 69 sets out obligations of the state in respect to the environment including public participation in the management, protection and conservation of the environmentArticle 174c- provides for participation of people in the exercise of the powers of the state in making decisions affecting them

Current state of public participation in Kenya- Legal frameworks1.EMCA- Amended EMCA 1999 to include principles of voluntary environmental management, rule of law, social justice, public participation, non-discrimination, devolution 2.Forest Act 2005-45 (1)- A member of a forest community may, together with other members or persons resident in the same area, register a community forest association under the Societies Act.

Current state of public participation in Kenya- Gaps and challengesLack of a national legal framework Lack of political goodwill to ensure participationInadequate resources and poor planning (expensive and time consuming)Contextual issuesLack of feedback mechanisms- need for appreciation of decisions made and the implications

Approaches and strategies Citizens participation ladder: Arnstein (1969, Journal of the American Planning Association, 35: 216-224)

Approaches and strategies: ContConsultation- shift from giving information to asking for viewsForm and strengthen Communities of InterestCollaboration- need for the public, CSOs and government to work togetherEmpowermentUse of ICTContextualize public participation approachesRoles for different stakeholders- PublicPublic:Know your rights!! eg right to information (Free, Prior and Informed Consent), participation, natural resource benefits, right to petitionParticipate and take advantage of available opportunities eg EIAs

Roles for different stakeholders- Civil SocietyCivil societyStrategic advocacy programming- Advocacy, FOR, WITH, BYMultipronged programming approaches to keep the public engaged- eg advocacy, livehoods

Roles for different stakeholders- GovernmentPresident Reagan- Nine Most Terrifying Words in EnglishI'm from the government and I'm here to help are the "nine most terrifying words in the English language," according to President Reagan.

1.Involve other stakeholders2.Adhere to legislative provisions on public participation3.Formal and informal programmes on civic education

Thank you

1311/15/2011